Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School are being investigated by the Competition and Markets Authority over concerns that customers were not shown the total price upfront when buying train and coach tickets, package holidays and driving lessons.
The CMA announced the investigations on Wednesday and said they were at an early stage, with no conclusions yet reached on whether any of the three companies had broken consumer law. If breaches are found, the regulator said it could order the firms to pay compensation to affected customers and fine them up to 10 per cent of their global turnover.
The Trainline investigation focuses on whether all mandatory fees were displayed to travellers buying train and coach tickets in advance on the platform’s app and website. The CMA said it observed transactions with additional fees ranging from 59p to £2.79 on train bookings, and a £1.50 booking fee on coach journeys. The case against the FTSE 250 company was formally opened on 18 August, according to the regulator’s case record.
Shares in Trainline, the only listed company of the three, fell 16 per cent, or 38p, to 205p in early trading on Wednesday.
The investigation into Virgin Atlantic concerns mandatory resort fees and local taxes charged on package holidays, while RED Driving School is being examined over how a mandatory booking fee and a so-called digital fee — which the CMA put at more than £7 per booking — were displayed to customers booking driving lessons.
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